Why did VIPRE miss a Threat?

Modified on: Wed, 12 Jul, 2017 at 10:36 PM

Why didn't VIPRE catch a threat?

There are so many variables that come into play when you try to protect a PC against malware. There are over 13 million detection in the VIPRE signature files. There are hundreds of generic detections that can catch some new malcode before our analysts even see it. also the MX-V technology in VIPRE can detect and stop great deal of virus like behavior. However, there maybe as many as 200,000 new pieces of malcode arriving somewhere on the Internet every day. We do see cases in which new malcode does make it through the VIPRE defenses. That isn't a common occurrence. When malcode does make it through, many times we discover that an incorrect setup of the VIPRE is the problem. Below are things to consider in making sure that VIPRE works to the fullest:

Configuration Settings

Make sure that you are running the latest definitions and software version of VIPRE. Click the appropriate link to check the latest version running: VIPRE Internet Security and VIPRE Antivirus

Make sure that all other applications installed on your computer are all up-to-date (e.g. Operating System, Java, Adobe, All browsers...etc)

Make sure that your Antivirus and Firewall (for VIPRE Internet Security) are ON.

Make sure that you have VIPRE set to Handle Threats Automatically turned ON

I got infected by an old threat. Why did VIPRE miss a threat?

Malware authors are very dedicated to making money at your expense. They monitor which AV companies are detecting their malcode, make changes, and they do their own testing until they feel there is a good chance that their malcode will evade detection by most Antivirus products. They then release that version into the wild. A particular malware author will continue to release new variants until it is caught by the the majority of AV products. Then they will move on to a whole new project.

The fastest way for us to provide protection for any new variant is to obtain samples of the threat as soon as possible so that we may make changes needed to allow VIPRE to identify this new code as malicious. We have teams assigned to hunting down and finding these new variants so we can be as productive as possible, but with the number of new threats being released every day we have to also be very reactive.

How do I submit a Threat?

If you encountered a threat that you would like to have added to our definitions and you are able to locate the malicious files on your machine, they can be directly submitted to us. How to submit a Threat

A threat is being detected over and over again. Why does it keep coming back?

If this is the case, it is likely that you are infected with a new variant of an existing threat and there has been something added to it that we need to identify so that we can protect against it.

In the event that a threat is not completely removed by VIPRE and to help ensure that we are able to obtain samples of these threats as fast as possible, we offer an incentive very rare to the antivirus industry a free remediation assistance,.This means that we will collect information from your system and then, if need be, we will remote into it and repair the damage done by the infection. As a part of this remediation we collect any samples found on the system and use that to update our definitions. Click here to submit a case to Technical Support. Submit a Case

How did I get infected/where this infection com from?

A common method on how your PC got infected is through malicious links: (never click a link unless you know the target destination is safe)

Drive-by downloads: these are the download of spyware, a computer virus, or any kind of malware that happen without knowledge of the user. Drive-by downloads may happen when you visit a website, view an e-mail message or click on a deceptive popup window. Many users click the window in the mistaken belief that, for instance, it is an error report from their own PC or that it is an innocuous advertisement popup. In such cases, the malicious: "supplier" may claim that the user "consented" to the download though he or she was completely unaware of having initiated a malicious software download.

Exploits: these are pieces of malware that take advantage of a weakness in a web browser, e-mail client, Adobe Flash installation or operating system. They install themselves without any user intervention whatsoever. Many take advantage of older vulnerabilities in applications or operating systems that don't have the latest updates installed. This is why it is important to install updates promptly.

Email attachments: infected attachments that arrive in spam emails can infect machines then send emails to everyone in the user's address book. These spoofed email messages will contain some kind of enticing story to get you to follow a link to a malicious site or open an attachment which is actually the installer for the malware.

Should you need further assistance, please contact us using the information found on this link: VIPRE Support